Trials of Henry Kissinger

Eugene Jarecki's 2002 political documentary The Trials of Henry Kissinger comes to DVD from First Run Features. Presented with a widescreen anamorphic transfer and Dolby Digital Sound in English. Special features include the featurette "Sundance After Effect," along with filmmaker interviews, audio commentary, trailers, and photo galleries. This is a completely/i>…
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Overview

Eugene Jarecki's 2002 political documentary The Trials of Henry Kissinger comes to DVD from First Run Features. Presented with a widescreen anamorphic transfer and Dolby Digital Sound in English. Special features include the featurette "Sundance After Effect," along with filmmaker interviews, audio commentary, trailers, and photo galleries. This is a completely adequate DVD for a confrontational film that received a modest theatrical release.

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Editorial Reviews

All Movie Guide - Josh Ralske

The Trials of Henry Kissinger is a scathing documentary that methodically dissects the diplomatic career of Henry Kissinger, making a compelling case that the self-styled media celebrity is guilty of war crimes. Audiences should be forewarned that the film presents a great wealth of information, coming fast and furious, and it would be helpful to have some knowledge of U.S. foreign policy during and just after the Vietnam War going into the film. While there's plenty of damning evidence on display against Kissinger, the filmmakers don't make the case that he was the sole architect of, for example, the scuttling of Lyndon Johnson's peace talks with the North Vietnamese. While it's true that Kissinger had tremendous influence over some of the more tainted actions of U.S. forces overseas during this time, Nixon and others surely played a larger role than they're given credit for here. Still, Kissinger's unconvincing denials of his own foreknowledge of Indonesia's invasion of East Timor and of the kidnapping/assassination of a prominent Chilean general who supported Allende help the filmmakers' case. Eugene Jarecki and Alex Gibney deserve tremendous credit for adapting Christopher Hitchens' book into a fast-paced documentary that entertains as it informs.

Scene Index

Side #1 -- 1. Statesman or War Criminal? [9:04] 2. Coming of Age [5:33] 3. Vietnam '68: Which Side Are You On? [5:42] 4. National Security Advisor [4:23] 5. The Secret Bombing of Cambodia [4:20] 6. The Ultimate Aphrodisiac [4:08] 7. The Invasion [4:51] 8. The Christmas Bombing and the Peace Prize [3:09] 9. Khmer Rouge and the Fall of Nixon [5:50]10. Secrets [1:09]11. The Massacre of East Timor [7:44]12. Haunted by the Past [2:36]13. Chile: Track II [5:53]14. Assassination of a General [10:05]15. Universal Justice? [4:03]16. End Credits [1:00]

Menu

Side #1 -- Start Film Chapters Special Features Audio Commentary: On Audio Commentary: Off Interview With Filmmakers Sundance Aftereffect Photo Gallery Related Reading Theatrical Trailer Trailer Gallery Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times Bonhoeffer Berkeley in the Sixties War Photographer First Run Features First Run Features